Improvement in ingot-wioids



2 Sheets-{Shun 1.

A. L. HOLL EY.

lmproyeinent in ingot-Molds.

Patented July 30,1872.

2 sheets sheet 2.

A. L. HOLLEY,

Improvement in lngot-Molds.

Patented July 30, $872.

various methods and apparatus for casting two or more ingots at one pouring by letting the liquid iron or steel run into one in got-mold of runners molded in a flask or distributer,

in improvements in casting ingots and masses relates to an improved means of stopping the in excess, ingots must be made of the various ingot will not be likely to crack. One method side elevation, as shown at H, Fig. 5. If the qivrrnn STATES rrrcn.

i A. L. HOLLEY, OF HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

IMPROVEMENTIN lNGOT-MOLDS.

Specification forming part of Letters Pat of a group of molds, whence it :is distributed to the bottoms of the other molds by means upon which all the molds stand.

My invention hereinafter described consists when themolds are filled from the bottom, and

tops of said molds.

To enable others to'put these improvements into use, Iwill describe several forms of my improvements, reference being had to the drawings forming apart of this specification.

My invention consists, in improved methods of stopping the tops of molds that are filled from the bottom. To' produce rails, axles, 850., of different weights, without making scrap suitable weights. To avoid the cost of different. sets of ingot-moldsfor each required weight of ingots it is desirable to cast ingots of variousweight-s, and hence various heights, in the same set of molds. My improvements consist in stopping off amold at any required heightby-means that may be easily and quickly applied, and in such a manner that the of doing this is shown. by Fig.4, which is a vertical sectionof a1 mo1d,G, and stopper H. The stopper isfa piece of sheet iron or steel, Fig. 6,: with the edges turned up on the line J J so asto form flanges and to appear in mold G has, say, one or two inches taper, the flanges H mayvbe bent so as just to enter the large end or bottom of the mold G. The stop per is then set on a post, K, Fig. 5, the post ent No. 129,957, dated July 30,1872.

beingas long as the required ingot. The mold G is then raised and brought over the stopper and post, and then lowered into the position shown at Fig. 4. The flanges H will have been bent more nearly to a right angle by the tapering sides of the mold, and will be thus wedged sufficiently fast to stay in place when the post is removed. Before the post is removed the top of the mold above the stopper H is filled with loam or sand L, by preference a little damp, and slightly rammed. A few small (say one-eighth inch) vent-holes are previously made in the stopper H, and vent-holes may be pricked in the sand. A plate, M, is

'then laid on the sand and. wedged down in the usual manner. The liquid iron or steel will rise up against the stopper. H, and the gases will pass off through thevent-holes and the sand L. When the ingotw thus formed, contracts in cooling it will easily pull down the stopper H. The sand L prevents any fin of iron or steel from runningup the side of the mold beyond the stopper. of steel chills and acquires great tenacity while the body of the ingot is still liquid and pasty and easily pulled apart, so that such a film hooking over the top of the mold or otherwise getting fast prevents the top part of the ingot from coming down as the mass cools and contracts, and thus the ingot is cracked. I In case the ingot-mold haswvery little or no taper, the flanges H of the stopper may be bent in by hand while they are being entered into the bottom of the mold. These flanges should in all cases press hard enough against the sides of the mold to stay in place when the post is removed.

Another method I employ for stopping off the ingot-mold at any required height is shown by Fig. 7, in which G is a vertical section of an in got-mold, and-N a cast-iron stopper, which may be placed at any required height in the (mold. Fig. 9 is a plan of themold G and top plate M. In order to prevent any fin of iron or steel from running up the side of the mold beyond the stopper, and thus cracking the ingot,I fill the mold around and above the stopper, as at 0,1 with sand, by. preference rammed, vented, and held down by the plate M, as before described. In order to prevent the sand when thrown into the top of the moldfrom running down past the stopper, either the stopper must be pretty well fitted to the sides of the mold or the opening around the stopper must be closed when the sand is put in. Fitting the stopper to the mold would require a different stopper for each different height of ingot, on account of the taper of the mold, and would require the insertion of the stopper from beneath, which would lead to some delay and inconvenience. I therefore use a stopper small enough to set into the top of the mold, and I keep the space around the stopper closed while the sand is being put in and rammed. This may be done by making the post K fit the interior of the mold, so that the sand around the stopper will rest upon the top of the post; but as the post is not likely to fit well into different molds I prefer to set upon it the adjustable blocks P P for the sand to rest upon. The mold is raised and set over the post K, Fig. 7, which is beveled at the top. The blocks P P, shown in plan at Fig. 8, then being laid on top of the post, slide down .the beveled top of the post into the corners of the mold, whatever the height of the post may be, and thus close the mold sufficiently to hold the sand so that it may be rammed. The stopper N is then set upon the plates P P, and the sand 0 is put into the mold and rammed, vented, and covered with the plate M. The mold is then lifted off from the post and plates P P and set upon the flask to receive the iron or'steel, as before described. When the liquid iron or steel rises in the mold up to the stopper it is chilled by the stopper and by the sand surroundin git, so that the ingot can shrink without cracking from the cause above described, and so that the mold and stopper can be lifted off from the ingot.

The top of the post K may, if preferred, be made flat, and the plates P may be placed in the corners of the mold by hand. The stop per may be held up in the mold after the mold is removed from the post by any suitable means.

I sometimes employ the two hooks Q Q.

screwed into the top of the stopper and hanging on the top of the mold. Hooks of different lengths may be used for ingots of difi'erent heights.

I sometimes find it useful to suspend the stopper N in the ingot-mold by means of a spring suitably arranged-for instance, as at W, Fig. 23--in order to allow the stopperN to come down as the ingot shrinks, should the top of the ingot stick to or become hooked over the stopper.

I sometimes hold the stopper N in the ingotmold by means of springs. One method of doing this is illustrated by Fig. 24. The lower ends of the spring X X are secured to the stopper N, and their upper ends press against the insides of the mold hard enough to hold up the stopper.

Another method I employ of stopping the top of a mold is shown at Fig. 1. The mold Sis placed on the flask with its large end upward, and a cast-iron plate, R, by preference about the thickness of the walls of the mold, laid upon it. When the mold is filled with iron or steel, and the ingot thus formed shrinks, the upper end of it cannot come down on accountof the taper of the mold, as well as on account of fins of steel that are likely to run between the mold and the plate R. But the sprue G will bend sufficiently to let the lower end of the ingot rise as it shrinks; and thus, if the joint between the mold and the flask at T is tight enough to prevent the liquid iron or steel from running into the joint, the ingot can contract without cracking. This joint may be made tight in any suitable manner. I prefer a paste of fire-clay, sand, and plumbago, or other suitable refractory material, on the top of the flask, or on the bottom of the mold, before the mold is set upon the flask. The flask should be warm when used, and the warmth of the flask will very quickly dry the paste so as to prevent its blowing when the iron or steel strikes it. The paste squeezed out from under the mold may also, if necessary, be rammed into the joint T by a suitable tool. The plate R not fitting perfectly tight on top of the mold, a space is thus left for the ventilation of the mold. This is a rapid method of stopping molds, but does not allow of casting ingots of various lengths in the same mold.

If the mold were set on the flask with the small" end upward, and this small end covered so that a fin of iron or steel could run and hook over it, the ingot, being held fast by the taper at the large end and by this fin at the small end, would be likely to be pulled apart by the shrinkage.

'Two other methods of stopping the top of the same mold at diiferent heights are modifications of the method last described, and are shown by Figs. 10 and 11, which are vertical sections of molds S S and stoppers U V. In Fig. 10 the joint at T is made as at Fig. 1, above described, and a cast-iron stopper, U, of proper size to set in the mold at the height of the required ingot, is placed in the top of the mold. Some sand is then placed around the stopper U to prevent the iron or steel from running up the side of the stopper, and is by preference rammed and vented, as before mentioned. In Fig. 11 a sheet-iron stopper, like that in Fig. 4, above described, is set into the mold at the required height, and covered with sand, and properly rammed and vented. Additional weights or parts to hold down this stopper may be added if required. A fin of iron or steel running past the stopper in Figs. 10 and 11 will not cause the ingot to crack so long as the joint T is properly made; but I prefer to put some sand on and about the stoppers to prevent the waste of iron or steel.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,is-

1. The flanged sheet-metal stopper for stopping oif ingot-molds at various heights, constructed and operating substantially as de scribed.

2. The pieces P P, substantially as and for the purposes set forth. j

3. The combination of the post K, pieces P P,and stopper N, substantially as and for the purposes set fort a 4. The springs W and X, operating as set forth, in combination with the stopper of an ingot-mold, substantially as and for the purposes described. 7 5. The stoppers U, V, and R, operating as set forth, in combination with a flask or distributer for casting two or more ingots at one pouring, substantially as and. for the purposes described.

6. The combination of a bottom-casting ingot-mold with a suitable device or devices capable of stopping off the mold at various heights, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

A. L. HOLLEY.

Witnesses: 1

JOHN R. COOPER, T. B. BEECHER. 

